Having recently filled two positions—Tony Slone as electric line department superintendent and Al Baker as service department superintendent—the City of Galion is looking forward to improvements not only within those departments, but within the city as a whole.
Slone, a longtime Galion resident, previously worked as a lineman with the City of Shelby. He said that he believes he can help bring the Galion line department up to speed with the expertise and knowledge he acquired from his prior job.
“The fact that Tony is a local person makes a big difference as far as the commitment,” said Galion Mayor Tom O’Leary. “Historically most of our line staff has been Galion area residents, and that’s really important when you have an outage.”
Slone is stepping into a position that had been vacant for just over a year. Mark Triplett, the previous line department superintendent, retired on May 31, 2013. Consequently, Slone will be wearing “many, many hats,” he said.
In addition to training the employees, he hopes to make sure everyone within the line department is on the same page. “Right now, [the employees] are making maps to map our system, so that way every individual that is a member of the line department knows where switches and circuits are—that’s job one,” Slone said.
Among the department’s top priorities is “cleaning house with the trees so to speak,” Slone said. He hopes to help get the city brought up to federal code regarding minimum clearance between trees and electrical lines.
According to the Office of the Ohio Consumer’s Counsel, electric utilities are required to maintain the reliability and safety of their system, which is partly done by keeping branches away from power lines. Utility companies and contractors may enter property to trim any branches that are touching or near electrical lines.
Tree trimming will usually involve clearing branches to allow at least 10 feet of space surrounding a power line, the counsel notes.
“We may have to incorporate outside help to get this caught up,” he said. “But the sooner we get it done, the better.”
Slone further commented, “I think people in general will see more activity out of the line department because they now have somebody to give them direction.”
Likewise, Baker hopes to see increased activity within the street department and water and sewer maintenance department, which both make up the service department.
Baker, who officially started his job on May 19, said he’s already witnessed an example of how both the street and water and sewer maintenance departments have worked together effectively to solve an issue.
Last Thursday, May 29, both departments helped execute a mill-and-fill on Portland Way South. “It was nice being able to pull both departments together,” Baker said.
Baker previously worked with the Ohio Department of Transportation as the Crawford County Administrator for eight years.
He noted that he would like to carry out more mill-and-fill projects in the future, along with organizing a systematic cleaning of the sanitary and storm sewers.
Mayor O’Leary said that in the past, the street and water and sewer maintenance departments relied on contractors for projects.
However, he said, “I think a year from now, being patient, we’ll have the capability of doing those projects ourselves instead of hiring a contractor.”
Both Slone and Baker are looking forward to bright futures. “I look forward to the challenges, and hopefully in the near future we’ll see some difference in how the streets are maintained,” Baker said.
“I’m excited about putting the city together that really needs to be brought into this century and being able to share my vision of what I think that should look like,” Slone added.
“I think people in general will see more activity out of the line department because they now have somebody to give them direction,” said Line Superintendent Tony Slone.
